Viktor Khristenko told RIA Novosti that foreign investors were interested in opening plants near Moscow and St. Petersburg but refused to these name companies.
"Toyota, which signed a memorandum on its intention to build a plant near St. Petersburg is completing an agreement on its investments," he said. "Renault is also working in this direction and is set to finalize plans on its presence in the Moscow Region."
Khristenko said it was a different type of activity when Russian investors purchased a right to produce foreign cars and cited the production of Kia Spectra in Izhevsk in European Russia and Ssang Yong Rexton offroaders by Severstal Avto.
He said many dealers viewed cars' industrial assembly as a threat to their business.
"Imports growth was the first reaction to industrial assembly, which yielded a reverse effect." Khristenko said. "Meanwhile, industrial assembly means investments, which cannot appear at once."
He also said growing imports had boosted investments in Russia as foreign investors saw that sales of their cars were increasing.
"Today we see that industrial assembly is the most rapidly growing sector on the Russian market," the minister said.
Khristenko said the Russian car market worth $22 billion per year was witnessing stable and serious growth.
Ford is currently assembling its cars in Vsevolzhsk, the Volga Area, Renault in Moscow and General Motors, BMW and Kia in Kaliningrad, Russia's exclave on the Baltic Sea.
Volkswagen and Nissan are planning to open production in Russia soon. SeverstalAvto signed licensing agreements with FIAT, Ssang Yong and Isuzu. AvtoVaz and General Motors are producing Chevrolet Niva 4WD.
